2026 Denver AANHPI Funding Snapshot

U.S. Institutional Giving for Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander Communities in the Denver Metro Area

For every $100 awarded by funders in the Denver Metro Area, AANHPI communities receive 5 cents.

The Denver Metro Area is home to more than 185,000 Asian Americans and nearly 13,600 Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders, representing 6.7% of the metro area’s population. Between 2019 and 2023, these communities received $4.4 million of the $9.2 billion awarded by institutional funders in the region, just 0.05% of regional philanthropic funding, one-seventh the already low national average of 0.34%.

Denver’s philanthropic sector has significant capacity. The question this data raises is whether that capacity is being directed toward the full range of communities it serves.

Key Findings

• Severe and persistent underfunding: At 0.05% of regional philanthropic dollars, Denver’s AANHPI communities receive funding at a rate dramatically below the national average. The gap between the region’s AANHPI population share (6.7%) and its funding share (0.05%) is among the largest of any metro analyzed.
• Funding peaked in 2021 and has declined since: AANHPI funding reached $1.2 million in 2021 following the racial justice uprisings and Atlanta Spa Shootings, then fell to $885,000 by 2023, lower than 2020 levels. This pattern suggests responsiveness to visibility moments rather than sustained strategic commitment.
• Extreme funder concentration: The top 5 funders account for 68.4% of all AANHPI funding in the region, and the top 20 account for 91.2%. This level of concentration means the region’s AANHPI organizations are dependent on a very small number of relationships.
• Health dominates the funding landscape: Health accounts for nearly half (49.9%) of all AANHPI funding in Denver, driven largely by the Colorado Health Foundation. Community & Economic Development, a top-three issue area nationally, accounts for just 1.3% of regional AANHPI funding.
• Local funders are leading: The top two funders, the Colorado Health Foundation ($1.5M) and the Caring for Denver Foundation ($793.9K), are both local, indicating that Denver-based institutions have already identified AANHPI communities as a funding priority. The infrastructure exists to expand from there.

The Opportunity

Denver’s data tells a clear story: AANHPI communities are dramatically underfunded relative to their population, their needs, and the scale of regional philanthropy. At the same time, the presence of locally rooted funders among the top givers demonstrates that Denver-area institutions are capable of directing resources to these communities. The low baseline means that even modest increases from a broader set of funders would represent meaningful change.

Total AANHPI funding across the entire five-year period, $4.4 million, averages to less than $1 million per year. In a region with $9.2 billion in philanthropic capacity over that same period. Moving from less than $1 million per year would require more funders making deliberate choices to include AANHPI communities in their existing portfolios.

Why This Data Matters

For Denver-area funders: The Colorado Health Foundation and Caring for Denver Foundation have demonstrated that funding AANHPI communities in this region is both possible and impactful. If your institution funds health equity, human services, immigrant rights, or community development in the Denver metro area, AANHPI communities are among those your work is meant to serve. This data can help you assess whether your current portfolio reflects that.

For national funders with Colorado grantmaking: Denver’s AANHPI communities are significantly underrepresented in the national funding picture, Colorado received just $4.98 million total in AANHPI funding between 2019 and 2023 in the national snapshot. If your institution funds racial equity work nationally, the Denver metro area represents a region where additional investment would go further than almost anywhere else in the country.

For advocates and organizers: This data establishes a documented baseline. Denver’s AANHPI organizations are doing critical work in health, human services, and human rights with extremely limited philanthropic support. These findings give you concrete evidence to bring to funder conversations and a clear benchmark against which future investment can be measured.

For AAPIP Rocky Mountain Chapter members: This report gives your chapter a local data foundation for advocacy. You can now show Denver-area funders specifically where the gaps are, which issue areas are underfunded relative to national patterns, and what it would take to bring regional investment closer to parity. The data shifts the conversation from general awareness to specific, actionable asks.

The Path Forward

After 35 years of national data showing persistent underinvestment in AANHPI communities, the Denver snapshot adds regional specificity to that picture. The 5-cent figure is not a ceiling, it is a starting point. Denver’s philanthropic community has the capacity, and in some cases has already demonstrated the will, to do significantly more. This report is an invitation to act on that.

Questions or want to discuss these findings? Contact us at aapip@aapip.org

Ready to help Denver lead on AANHPI investment? Email us at aapip@aapip.org to explore funding strategies, or learn about AAPIP membership.